


It Had To Be Done

by Grimalkenkid



Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: Gen, Kidnapping, Pre-Game(s), Shame, Spoilers, mild shipping if you squint hard enough
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-12
Updated: 2016-03-12
Packaged: 2018-05-26 08:35:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,488
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6231754
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Grimalkenkid/pseuds/Grimalkenkid
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>If he kept saying that to himself, then it just might become true.</p>
<p>(Spoilers for Shura's character and maybe mild game spoilers.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	It Had To Be Done

**Author's Note:**

> It's only brought up a few times in-game, but I really wanted to explore the circumstances around Azura's kidnapping... Or maybe I just wanted an excuse to write young Shura.
> 
> Characters might be slightly OOC.
> 
> (Cross-posted from tumblr.)

            It had to be done.

            Shura kept repeating those words in his head as he led the small, blue-haired girl through the dank passageways below Castle Krakenburg. She had long ago stopped crying, but he could still hear her sniffle every now and then. “Keep quiet,” the young thief snapped when she made so much as a whimper. Shura knew that there was really no reason to be angry with her; he was the one doing the awful deed.

            It must’ve been because of that ninja. The one who had contacted him on behalf of Hoshido’s chief tactician. Shura accepted the offer to kidnap one of Nohr’s princesses with little fuss – he needed the gold, and this was a fairly easy job – but that ninja had definitely looked down on him, and not just literally. He must not have realized that the boy he made a deal with had formal ninja training, as he’d mumbled something about how quick Nohrians were to sell out their own royals for gold. Not many would’ve been able to hear that, but the young thief picked it up easily.

            He gritted his teeth as he remembered that encounter. He’d almost turned on the man and shouted that he wasn’t Nohrian, that he was a proud member of the Kohga clan. But that would’ve been a lie. He wasn’t proud of anything he’d done to survive, and Kohga was long gone. Shura wondered if anyone still recognized his Kohgan features or if he’d been in Nohr so long that he looked like any other of its citizens. He wondered if anyone would recognize anything about his homeland at all or if they’d erased their memories of it to wipe away their guilt. Shura wouldn’t have been surprised if that were the case. Even he had tried to forget, if only to ease the pain when he was all alone and trying to fall asleep.

            As they emerged from the underground into the dark grey light of a Nohrian afternoon, the young thief pushed those thoughts from his mind. He had a job to do, and being upset wasn’t going to help him finish it. Eventually, someone at the castle would realize that Azura was missing, and he wanted to be across the border when that happened. He tugged on the princess’s hand to change their direction as he angled their path towards the market. It wasn’t uncommon to see kids riding in the back of wagons, and hitching a ride would be far quicker than walking all the way to Hoshido.

            There were a few wagons getting ready to leave town when they got to the market. Shura spent just a few minutes listening to conversations to figure out which one would be going nearest to the Hoshido-Nohr border before all but throwing Azura into the back as the wagon started to move. The young thief soon followed, grabbing onto her hand as soon as possible to make sure she wouldn’t try to make an escape by jumping off. Sighing, Shura leaned back against the hay that blocked them from the driver’s view. He was one step closer to getting paid.

            “Um…”

            Shura glanced over at the girl, brow furrowed in annoyance. “I told you to keep quiet,” he whispered. The princess had been almost silent since the last time he’d said that. Why had she decided to speak up now?

            Azura flinched and looked away. For a girl barely out of her toddler years, she seemed very aware and sensitive about her what was happening. That didn’t stop her from speaking completely, though.

            “… I’m cold…”

            The young thief huffed under his breath. “It’s not that cold. You’ll live.”

            She was silent once more, but soon she was curling her legs to her chest and rubbing her arm with her free hand. Shura instantly knew what she was doing. He’d done much the same thing on nights when the wind bit too sharply to ignore. Either she was good at acting or her dress was made of a material far thinner than it looked. Shura groaned in annoyance but let go of her hand to undo the clasp on his cloak. Azura didn’t move a muscle as he wrapped it around her shoulders and took her hand in his again.

            It wasn’t because he felt bad for her. It had to be done. No one would pay for a frostbitten princess.

            It was just a good decision. It had to done. That’s what he kept telling himself.

* * * * * * * * * *

            Shura didn’t remember the last time he’d been in Hoshido. Was it really so dark in Nohr that he had to shield his eyes when the sun came out? Not that it mattered for long, as he would only be welcome in the country until he delivered Azura to the Hoshidan capital.

            He had to mention several times that a tactician named Yukimura had contracted him to deliver Azura to the capital before anyone would let him get near the palace. Even then, the guards told him to wait just inside the entrance while they brought Yukimura to meet him. Shura could feel the eyes of several ninjas on him, but he tried his best to ignore them. The subtle pressure of Azura’s hand clenching around his fingers distracted him well enough until a samurai escorted a boy wearing glasses into the room. He had to be around Shura’s age, so he assumed he was just another intermediary.

            The boy adjusted his glasses before addressing the young thief. “You must be Shura, correct? I’m Yukimura, chief tactician under Queen Mikoto. As much as I’d like this to be over with, I must express gratitude for accepting this job. Your cooperation has saved Hoshido much-needed resources in these trying times.”

            Shura suppressed a desire to snort at his words. The thief’s surprise at his contractor being no older than he was himself was buried under the realization that Yukimura was obviously looking down his nose at him. He was being nothing but polite, yet Shura could hear the subtle distain in his voice. And why shouldn’t he feel such? After all, he was just a filthy Nohrian outlaw who sold his own princess for coin. It felt like a cold stone had settled in his stomach, but he pushed that feeling to the side. “I’ll be out of your hair soon enough. I brought your princess. Now you hold up your end of the bargain.”

            Yukimura’s eyes narrowed ever so slightly at the brashness in his tone but didn’t bring attention to it. Instead, he pulled out a small bag and presented it to the young thief. Shura pulled his hand out of Azura’s grasp in order to take the offered bag and inspect its contents. Sure enough, it was filled with gold coins, enough to last him several months at the least. He glanced up to see that the tactician’s attention had shifted to the small girl at his side.

            “Princess Azura, I apologize for the method in which we brought you here,” Yukimura smiled, kneeling down to be at eye level with her, definitely to make himself seem less intimidating. “I can assure you that we have no ill intentions towards you and will do everything to ensure your safety while you are here. Now, please, Queen Mikoto wished to see you as soon as you arrived.” He held his hand out to the princess even as the samurai nearby started giving Shura a look that said he was no longer welcome.

            The young thief didn’t need to be told off; he knew his work was done and started turning around just before he felt a tug on the hem of his tunic. He looked down to see Azura gripping the fabric and looking up at him with… some kind of unfathomable look on her face. It may have been sorrow or fear, but it was too even to be that. He was about to tell her that he had to go when she spoke up for what was only the second time since they’d left Krakenburg.

            “Ah… thank you. You should have it back now.”

            Shura almost didn’t know what she was talking about until she pulled the cloak off over her head and handed it back to him. He was honestly surprised; since being in Hoshido, Shura was warm enough that he almost completely forgot that he’d given her his cloak all the way back in Nohr. She hadn’t taken it off once since then… until now.

            “Yeah… thanks…” he mumbled as he tucked the cloak under one arm and walked out of the palace quickly, before anyone could say anything else.

            It had to be done. It wasn’t like she wouldn’t be safe in Hoshido. And he needed the coin. Everyone won. It just… had to be done.

            That phrase was no longer as comforting to Shura as it had once been.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and critiques are always appreciated. Thanks for reading!


End file.
